


What are you Doing Awake?

by ScarlettJJones



Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies), X-Men (Original Timeline Movies), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Charles Xavier in a Wheelchair, Domestic Fluff, Erik Lehnsherr Loves Charles Xavier, Erik is a Sweetheart, Fluff, Late Night Conversations, M/M, Tea, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, What the Heck are Tags?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:09:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24036391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScarlettJJones/pseuds/ScarlettJJones
Summary: Erik wakes up in the middle of the night in a cold bed and decides to go for a walk.Basically, Erik and Charles have a late night tea session.
Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier
Comments: 7
Kudos: 68





	What are you Doing Awake?

**Author's Note:**

> They're still living in the mansion. Could be read as their younger or the older versions... but if you read it as them older, it makes the whole thing so much softer.
> 
> Have at it.

Erik wakes up in the middle of the night in a cold bed. It’s still dark out, so it’s not close to morning yet. He looks around the room and rolls over. He lays there for a few minutes with his eyes closed trying to go back to sleep before he rolls to his other side.

Laying in the dark, he turns to lay on his back and stares up at the ceiling to whisper, “I’m wide awake.”

The house is too quiet. It’s suspicious being this quiet. Usually there’s at least a handful of kids up at all hours. There is always someone awake in the house. Right now it’s him. He huffs and rolls over to lie on his stomach, shoving hands under the pillow. He tosses around for a little bit longer before he kicks off the blankets and decides to take a walk.

Erik's achy worn out bones argue with him, but he gets up, steps into his slippers and grabs his robe to walk out the door. As he shimmies his robe over his shoulders, walking down the hallway he shuts the door behind him. Erik makes his way out of the wing that the adults reside in to wander down to the ground floor, checking on the kids. He reaches out to feel if there's any movement of metal in the rooms as he passes each door. The occasional oscillating fan but not much else.

Since the halls are quiet he decides to take a walk outside. Walking out the main doors that lead into the backyard he reaches out to the basketball court and the back field where the teenagers like to hang out. No one out there either. He takes a moment to soak in the quietness and the crisp night air, seeping into his joints.

He feels a familiar presence in his head asking for permission. He smiles at it, 'What are you doing awake?'

'Couldn't sleep. Felt restless.'

'Me too. Are you the reason I'm up?' Erik starts walking back inside.

'I hope not.'

'Where are you?' Erik enters the house through the back doors.

'Kitchen.' Erik makes his way to the kitchen to see Charles at the small table.

Charles smiles at him, "What are you doing awake?"

"Felt restless. Woke up cold." Erik repeats what Charles said with a smile. Erik runs his fingers across his shoulders as he walks behind him to sit down. "So, what are we doing?"

Charles points over his shoulder to the stove, "Making tea." 

"Make enough for two?"

"Always." Charles smiles.

Erik closes his eyes and just sits with Charles in silence. When the tea is ready, Charles rolls back then wheels over to the stove. He makes two cups and brings them back to the table.

"Thank you." Erik whispers as Charles sets it in front of him. He props up a foot in the chair across from him and they enjoy each other's company in peace.

Quiet is very rare around here. Especially the more and more kids that join the school every year. The halls become rambunctious at best and absolutely chaotic at worst during the days. Sometimes the kids will get agitated and fight going to bed or the older ones will sneak out to the back field. But tonight was relatively easy going. It made Erik suspicious, but didn’t question it and spent the evening with Charles, reading.

Charles looks over to Erik who is sitting with his hands wrapped around his glass, eyes closed again. He slides a hand across the table to grab onto his wrist. Without opening his eyes, Erik shifts his hand to where he can hold Charles'.

“Say it." Charles whispers.

"Mhm?" Opens one eye at him.

"You're thinking it. You always think it. But you rarely say it."

"I do say it and I say it often, but it's usually when you're asleep." Erik opens both eyes and squeezes his hand. "I say it in more ways than one, y'know?"

Charles smiles, "I do know."

Erik sits up and leans closer to him, "I love you, Charles Xavier."

Charles meets him halfway and kisses him, "I love you too, Erik Lehnsherr."

He pulls back and watches Erik, who gives him a soft, restful at him.

They go back to drinking their tea in peace, Erik still holding his hand. Both of them sit there long after their tea classes are empty as well as the kettle.

Charles lightly squeezes his hand and murmurs, “Hey.”

Erik looks over to him with an easy smile to see Charles grinning at him, “What?”

“Have you ever thought of hyphenating Lehnsherr?”

Erik’s smile grows, “Have you?”

“‘Charles Xavier-Lehnsherr’ doesn’t have that nice of a ring to it as ‘Erik Lehnsherr-Xavier’ does.” He shrugs with a raised eyebrow.

“Well,” Erik sits up again and looks over to Charles, “How does just ‘Erik Xavier’ sound?”

Charles tilts his head at him as he leans forward, “You’d really take my name? Not hyphenate it?”

Erik’s smile drops and looks at him seriously, “I’ve had many names in my long life, and yours would be the most meaningful.” He reaches his other hand to rest on top of their clasped hands, “Besides. It’s not like any of my kids have my last name.”

Charles breaks into quiet laughter and relaxes in his chair, looking at their hands.

Erik sits back and watches Charles’ smile and his eyes travel from their hands, to roam around the kitchen. He can tell that Charles is thinking about something, but doesn’t bother asking him since he knows that Charles will tell him when he wants to.

He lets go of Charles’ hand then pats his forearm, “Ready for bed?”

“Yeah.” Charles looks back at him with a smile.

“Then let's go back to bed.” Erik grabs his and Charles’ tea glasses and sets them in the sink to be washed later.

When Erik walks back to the table to push his chair in, Charles moves back enough to reach out and pinch Erik’s bottom.

“Hey, now.” Erik points at him with a smile, “Keep your hands to yourself until we get back to the room.”

Charles smiles as he wheels himself out of the kitchen alongside Erik walking down the hallway. They take the elevator up and slowly make their way to the room. Erik turns the door handle and opens it before they get to the door, to let Charles inside before him.

He walks back over to his side of the bed then discards his robe to the chair he got it from and kicks off his slippers, climbing in bed. He watches Charles pull up next to the bed and climb in, getting situated before Erik snakes an arm around his waist. He curls around him, breathing in the scent of Charles.

“Not cold anymore.”

“Nope. Not cold anymore.” Charles rubs his hand back and forth on Erik’s forearm then up his bicep. Erik closes his eyes to fall back asleep and Charles does the same, feeling a sense of calm.

Erik whispers once he feels Charles has fallen asleep, “I love you. More than you’ll ever know.”

“I love you too, and I think I know.” Charles kisses his temple.

As Erik falls asleep wrapped around Charles, he wonders what he did in his long, hard life to be gifted by this man. He may never know, but he doesn’t need to.


End file.
